In the Mountains
by Uchiha-x-Senju
Summary: Two leaders are sent out into the mountains, supposedly on patrol - but everyone is aware that the real mission is different. Either they kill each other, or come back closer than ever before. The choice is theirs. / MadaHashi


_A/N: Something I wrote a while back. Warnings: Madara's foul language, and showing characters from a side you... well... haven't seen before. _

_This setting is pretty simple; just two Shinobi on a mission. Say, after they became allies, but before Hashirama was picked Hokage. _

* * *

"Fuckin' visual prowess 'n' shit..."

"What are you goin'... Onnabout..."

"Sharingan! You my bitches now..."

"Madara... Seriously..."

Hashirama sat up, the tip of his head meeting with the tent. It didn't hurt, but came as quite a surprise. Hashirama blinked a few times and moved his hand around in the dark.

"Oops, sorry", he muttered when he accidentally touched the place near Madara's ass.

"'Tis fine, ju' fuckin' sleep..."

It was funny, now Madara swore much more in his dream world than he did awake. Well, at least he had finally started lowering his guard around him, and stopped waiting for Hashirama to fall asleep before doing so himself. Huh, now, Madara even allowed himself to oversleep once in a while - but then, Hashirama supposed he'd always known the Uchiha was a creature of the night.

"You're babbling again.", he said tiredly, but with a smile on his face.

"Not"

"Madara-"

"Not."

"Madara, honestly, it's getting annoying.", Hashirama smirked even wider, trying to keep his voice serious.

"Shove a kunai up your fuckin' ass, you fuckin' log."

Hashirama winced. His smile vanished immediately. Now THAT would not be tolerated.

With a determined look on his face, he smacked the back of Madara's head with his open hand. The reaction was immediate - Madara sprung up, eyes wide open and flaming with Sharingan. All sleep was gone from them, its place taken by pure fury. Hashirama jumped back, but his expression was a satisfied smirk.

"I'm not a log."

"Did I call you a log?"

"You did."

Hashirama slowly raised an eyebrow. Was he actually going to apologize...? No, too good to be true. Just maaaaayybe...

"Oh well. You bloody deserved it.", Madara fell, much resembling a log himself, back onto the ground and hid his face under his mane of raven black hair.

"Oi! You're such a bully.", Hashirama pouted and turned his back to him, crossing his arms on his chest.

After about a minute, the cold was starting to get unbearable. They were in the north, almost in the mountains, on an important mission that honestly had no other purpose than to get them to work together. It seemed like their clans had united against them, and they had to play along - which Hashirama didn't really mind all that much, but Madara seemed very uncomfortable.

Doubt slowly made its way back into Hashirama's thoughts.

Madara was breathing slowly. Maybe if he just...

Hashirama rolled over and hesitantly, inch by inch, neared Madara's back.

"...What are you doing."

He froze at the sound of his hoarse voice.

"Nothing?"

"..."

"I'm really cold."

Silence. Uneasy movement.

"Me too. But you know I can't stand it when someone's behind me"

"Madara, it's just me."

Hashirama rolled over one more time and their shoulder blades met. As well as other body parts.

Madara winced, trying to move away from him, but found himself pushed between Hashirama and the side of the tent, which was cold. Hesitantly he inched back to Hashirama, deciding that the Senju was at least warm. Yes, very nice and warm... and he even smelt of leaves...

"I'm about to Susano'o the hell out of you."

"Is your Susano'o warm?"

"I guess..."

"Then go right ahead", Hashirama pulled his knees to his chest and tried to preserve some body heat. "Sending us out on patrol in the mountains, really..."

"Fucked up, right", Madara muttered.

"Yeah"

"..."

"Madara?"

"..."

"Oi, Mads. Is Amaterasu warm?"

"What?"

"You know, black flames of destruction"

"Oh, that. I don't know, they probably are. No one has lived to tell", the Uchiha shrugged lightly, brushing his shoulders against Hashirama's. Now that was even warmer. He congratulated himself on being so very sneaky.

"Speaking of which. Can the caster stop Amaterasu?"

"What? Hashirama, what is this all about?", Madara sat up rapidly, yanking the blanket off. Hashirama screeched, jumping up with him to stay under the heavenly cloth.

When he was safe under the blanket again, he rubbed his eyes and looked at Madara.

"I'm considering asking you to cast it on me."

"Idiot."

"I know, it's just so fucking cold."

"Stop swearing, it's unlike you.", Madara lay back down again, forcing Hashirama to do the same.

There were a few seconds of silence.

Then, a quiet hiss.

"Amaterasu"

A small leather bag burst into black flames, giving off intense heat. Hashirama felt his own toes.

"Oh, thank God."

"That hurt my eye."

"Too bad."

"I'm gonna go blind one of these days."

"No, you're not."

"Fuckin' visual prowess, you loser..."

Ah, Madara was falling asleep again.

Hashirama smiled to himself.

"G'night."

"Hn."

* * *

"Wake up. Mads. Oi."

Madara's nostrils flared at the scent of baked something.

Something was the perfect word for it. Hashirama had started a fire in the snow (is that an oxymoron?) and was baking the something over it. The something looked like something between a dog and a rodent.

"I hope that's not a cat", Madara grumbled, pulling the blanket over his shoulders and moving out of the tent to join his partner.

Hashirama beamed.

"Of course not, silly, what would a cat be doing in the mountains?"

"Right", Madara moved over to him.

"Put the blanket over me too, would you"

"No."

"Madara!"

"Tch."

The Uchiha grunted, draping the blanket over his partner's shoulders.

"Only because you made breakfast.", he added.

"Who said it's for you?"

"...You're a real jerk, you know that? You get away with it because you're funny, but you're really just an ass. An ass in disguise"

Muttering sleepily, Madara watched the something turn again and again. It made him even more sleepy. Hashirama was flattered. This wasn't _just _lowering his guard, like around his family or his cats, this was completely opening himself and letting all his thoughts and feelings spill out. Hashirama felt like the bond they had now was even stronger than when they were children... because it'd been tested.

Hashirama remembered getting hit and cut and burned by this man, but he also remembered his hand stopping the kunai, his hand holding his, his lips...

"What are you looking at me like that for?", Madara asked, glaring at him.

"You think I'm funny?", Hashirama beamed happily, closing his eyes.

Madara groaned and hid his face in his hand.

"You're a failure"

A storm appeared over Hashirama's head faster than it was actually possible (tch, mini storms appear over people's heads all the time, of course) and he slumped down.

Silence.

Only the light squeak of the meat as it baked.

"Hey, no need to take everything so seriously. You know me, Hashirama, I can talk shit", Madara tried to be comforting, his voice a grumble and his eyes averted.

However much Hashirama appreciated it, his playful side took over.

"At least I have some positive aspects...", he muttered with a crooked grin.

Madara whacked him.

"You moron. I have positive aspects too!"

Hashirama turned the meat.

"Oh. Like?"

"YOU tell me!"

"Oh, it's gonna be a hard task."

"Hashirama..."

"Okay, okay. Well...", Hashirama turned the something. "Only if you say what you like about me."

"Who said I liked you?"

Hashirama moved his knee to hit his thigh.

"Whatever. Alright; you're disturbingly loyal."

"That doesn't sound like a virtue"

"It's the best I can manage, so shut up and listen. You're also impossibly stubborn...", Hashirama glanced at him. "...which means you never give up. I can respect that", he smiled again, and placed a hand on his.

Madara turned his face away, letting his hair cover it, but Hashirama knew. Very well. Madara Uchiha was smiling as well, and he was embarrassed about it. This was another thing that had changed about him - and Hashirama was hoping it would change back - that Madara used to smile openly at him. He used to wear the same happy, playful smirk, which vanished the day Izuna died. No, not the day Hashirama and him parted ways- after that, even in battle, Madara laughed and smiled and oh, even joked ever so subtly, knowing only Hashirama would understand...

Then Izuna's death changed everything.

"You also have a nice smile...", Hashirama blushed a little, "especially when you're not worried. So basically, when you're asleep."

Madara winced.

"You watch me?!", he snapped, but his face turned a bit red as well. Hashirama blinked.

"W-well, I... I just have trouble sleeping sometimes myself. I glance at you and you're smiling; you also talk a lot."

"I d-don't talk in my sleep!"

"Hm.", Hashirama chuckled, tilting his head. "You talk to me a lot."

"Wha-what?"

"Hashirama this, Hashirama that..."

"That's bullshit!"

The Senju's face turned serious.

"You also talk to Izuna and your other brothers. It always makes me sad, hearing that...", he looked down.

"I... apologize.", Madara looked away humbly. "I hate to bother you. If you don't sleep enough you'll be weak, and you won't be able to fight"

"It's alright. You only ever assure me of how you feel... When you're sleeping. I'd never regret hearing that", Hashidama beamed and turned his attention to the baking something again.

"I don't have to say it, eh? You know."

Madara have him the most unsure look Hashirama had seen on the proud Uchiha's face for years. It shocked him more than seemed adequate.

"Yeah.", he replied, scared his voice would break. "Of course."

"Good."

"..."

"..."

"Do you think it's ready?"

"The something? I think so."

"Alright."

"What is it exactly?", Madara asked skeptically, tilting his head to the side.

"It's a... What's wrong with just calling it? Yeah, let's name the species!", his enthusiastic side showing, Hashirama rocked back and forth with his hands holding his ankles.

"You idiot! You baked something you didn't know?! It could be poisonous!", Madara yelled, his voice echoing through the mountains. Hashirama clasped a hand over his mouth.

"Be quiet. If you're so great, go ahead and _sense _if there's any poison in it. You're a sensory type, aren't you?", he smirked.

"I can't _sense _poison, you moron Senju, I can only sense weapons thrown at me. And also an upcoming beating of one Hashirama"

"Aw, don't be like that. There, I'll try it first.", the older man smiled pleasantly and shoved a kunai in the meat.

"Hn."

He made a thoughtful face, then took a bite.

"It's kind of good."

Madara's stomach turned.

"It is?"

"Yeah. Sorry, you're not getting any."

Sharingan flamed.

"People think you're nice because you laugh a lot, but you're actually a jerk."

Hashirama pouted at this, and passed him his share without further objections. Madara took back the jerk thing (mentally, of course) and started eating.

"Have you noticed anything?", he asked in a monotone voice.

"No. As quiet as yesterday, Madara", Hashirama replied with a sigh. "Really, we should be getting back to the village."

"I actually consider this a good way of gathering one's thoughts. You're probably the only person... Alive... That does not bother me, and I can clear my mind."

"'Does not bother you', eh?", Hashirama cocked an eyebrow. "Who're the others- oooh, you mean Izuna, don't you?"

He met with a dead silence and the quiet sound of Mangekyō Sharingan activating. Madara was mad.

"Alright, alright, let's ignore that part about Izu- ah, relax now, turn off those eyes", he touched Madara's cheek with a nervous laugh. 'Alone in the mountains with Madara Uchiha' could be the title of a horror tale, and he knew better than most what said clan leader could do.

Especially after the Amaterasu incident.

Madara wasn't a cruel man. He preferred the term 'sadistic'.

Breakfast went by accompanied by Hashirama's conversation with himself, talking about things going from current weather conditions to Mito Uzumaki. Needless to say, Madara did not enjoy the Mito topic.

"She's nothing special, and her hair is the color of ripe tomatoes.", he grumbled, sharpening his kunai with a stone.

"Now you're being mean. She's not only intelligent, she's also kind and beautiful! I don't think there's a woman like her in all of Konoha"

"Tch, she has a temper"

"Look who's talking"

"That's _different_! That Uzumaki, she's like a paper bomb. She's going to explode sooner or later, and you'll regret all those compliments"

"Madara, you almost sound jealous."

"What? Get a brain, idiot!"

"Maybe you just don't like Mito"

"Hn."

"I think she's wonderful."

"Alright, stop talking about that Uzumaki. You're only doing it to annoy me"

"Maybe I am.", Hashirama smiled. He knew for sure, and he hoped Madara knew too, that no matter what Hashirama would love him and only him. Until the end.

"I hate you"

"Yeah, right."

* * *

_-fin-_

_Please review if you liked it! Follow for more!_

-カラス


End file.
